Reciprocating blade lawn mower



June 16, 1953 J, F. McsHANE ETAL RECIPROCATING BLADE LAWN MowER Fued'ua'rch 1, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet l Lilien Irans.- klzn FUI/@SI2 me andW alferLoyan June 16, 1953 J. F. Ms||ANE ETA.

RECIPROCATING BLADE LAWN MowER 3 sheets-sheet 2 Filed March 1, 1949 ya Z'Y liforneys.

June 16, I953 J. F. Mosl-IANE ErAL 2,641,894

RECIPROCATING BLADE LAWN MOWER Filed March l, 1949 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 82 L Jmp'fzfm" o c ane 'f7/,y and WrlferLqgan 5y' lforpeys.

Patented June 16, Y1953 UNITED STATES Para.

fr ortica:

8. Claims. l1 'Ix'hisdnventionv relates tomow-ing machil'lsland more particularly to. lawmmovers for; either manualv operation orV adapted; to be; dri-verra by poweremeans; such as: an` inter-narizv combustion engine;

One object of.v the invention is to; provide; a machine of--the type indicated having transverse cutter-bars. arranged for relative. reciprocation by the` travel of the. machine andi provided; with knives or sharpened teeth for; cutting, theY grass between theircooperating edges.

Another object isl to provide inf a machine. of thev typeV indicated, rmeans. for adjusting the height of thev cutter-bars' and knife-blades in relation.` tolthe ground Without'. disturbing the connection between the operating mechanism and; thefreciprocable cutterebar.

Another object is to provide: an improved construction of the cutter-bars tor` adapt them to gather leaningA or inclined grass-spears. and presentthem tothe cutting edges of-l the knives in erectl position whereby to insure an evenlycut lawn.

Another object is toprovide an arrangement of'A thecutter-bars adapted toy operateqinsuch manner as toeliminate any shearing action -tending to force someV of' the ne grass-spears out* of their erect position between the knives;

Another object isto provide inf. a machine.` ofy the type indicated, an improved method of operationofl the cutter-bars to insure thev cut;- ting of any surplusgrass` that may icker into place between the knives.

Another object is toproviderinVY a machine of the-typeindicated; means forI operating-the re:-

ciprocating cutter-bar from the; traction wheels through the intermediaryofi xedlyerel'ated' cams which aren proof against disruptioniof' their timed action;

Another object'isto provide a machine of the type indicated having a rocker-element for operiating-the reciprocabl'e cutter-barand comprising a transverse shaft' driven from' the traction*- wheels with cams thereon engaging rollers on the rockereelement' toV oscill'ate it duringl the travel of the machine;

Another object isto: provide a machine ofthe type indicated o having frictionreduci-ngI bearings togrender it more easily operated' by propelling it along the ground'.

Another object is'v to provide a machinefof the ymerceeconomical to; manufacture and assemble.

Further objects;l or; thev improvement: are set Vforth inl, the following Spooinoation which. da

' show-ing the traction-wheels in transverse section to illustrate the dri-vefor the. operating, mechanismof the` Areciprocating cutter-bar;I

Fig. 4 is.` a fragmentary; View of thel driving means between one of theY traction-wheels; and

the cam-shaft` andi illustrating theclutch-mech.-

anism for connecting the drive;

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional viewtaken through the: center of.' the` machine.; and

Fig. 6 is a similar sectional View taken on line 6.-6: of Fig. 3 showing the gearing connections betweeny the traction-Wheeland the, cam-shaft.

We are aware thatv heretofore lawn-mowers have', been provided with a relatively-fixed and a. slidablecutter-bar having teeth or thelike; for cutting; theey grass with means for reciprocating thasli'dable-bar-from the rotation of the traction.- wheelsj when the mowerv is propelled along the ground. Ther machineof the presentV invention gener-.ally of; this. type but embodies several important improvementsi-n the, construction. and arrangement of the,` cutter-bars, their operating mechanismincluding the drive-therefor, and also in the structure and.r method;y of assembly off the variousparts ot the machine.

Reierring-,tc the drawings, the presentmachine comprisesfa main'` framefconstituted byv a pair of paralleli spaced-apart. plates; 2; of disk-shape con.- necteid by transverseif strutsor bracesand forming: thefmounting: for; a pair: of traction-wheels, 4. Extending.; between the side plates or disks 2 above the center thereof is a transverse, rod or stretcher 3 secured` thereto by: bolts 5' inserted through. holes inthe plates, and screwed'. into; the ends of tlietrod. Below the center ottheplatesis a crossbar or* strut 5; formedzwith. a.rectang.u1ar bearingeblock 't at its; center and uprights or vertical: extensions 8 at' its; opposite. ends..` rlhe extensions 82' provide brackets forl fastening the ends of the crossloarr lto the inner faces; of.' the plates: or disks 2 The. brackets dare. attached; to the side'. plates 2: by meansot bolts lzlkwhichpserve as. the'v axles. for the traction-wheels. 4:. Preferably; the bolts l'zare inserted from the outside through. holes in theplates 2 and brackets; 8. with nuts Li on their; inner ends;` set; upf against as shown most clearly in Figs. 3 and 4.

washers l2 to clamp the brackets to the inner faces of the plates. Needle-bearings i are provided surrounding the axle-bolts ID to serve as friction-reducing journals for the tractionwheels 4, with washers I3 under the heads of the bolts set up against the ends of the bearing-races for holding the wheels in place.

The traction-wheels 4 are of hollow construction having hubs l5 journaled on the needlebearings l5 and radial flanges Il supporting enlarged peripheral rims I8. The rim I8 of each wheel is recessed on the inside to form a circumferential shouldered seat i9 for receiving a gearring forced thereinto and provided with internal teeth 2|. The teeth 2| of the gear-rings 2B mesh with the teeth 23 of a pair of piniongears 22 mounted en the opposite ends of a cam-shaft projecting through openings in the side plates 2.

Each pinion-gear 22 is provided with a hub 25 mounted free to rotate on the end of the camshaft 25. The pinions 22 are held in place on the ends of the cam-shaft 25 in abutting relation to the outer faces of the plates 2 by the ends of their teeth 23 engaging against the bottom of the recess I5 in which the ring-gear 28 is held. The pinions 22 are connected to `drive the camshaft 25 through means of clutches 30 engageable with the ends of their hubs 25.

The cam-shaft 25 is journaled to rotate in needle-bearings 3l supported by brackets 32 projecting from the inner sides of the plates 2 The brackets 32 are constructed in the form of arms 33 reaching inwardly from the plates 2 toward each other and carrying bearing-bosses 34 at their ends. The arms 33 may be formed as a part of the plates 2 or welded or otherwise suitably fastened thereto.

'Ihe clutches 38 may be in the form of cylindrical sleeves mounted to slide on the cam-shaft 25 and held rotatively therewith by means of transverse-pins 35 engaging through slots 3E in opposite sides of the sleeves. The ends of the clutch-sleeves 38 may be formed with pairs of ratchet-teeth 3l disposed diametrically thereof and adapted to be engaged by similar teeth 38 on the ends of the hubs 2E of the pinions 22. Helical springs 4i) encircling the cam-shaft 25' between the ends of the clutch-sleeves 35 and the bearings 34 act to force the clutch-sleeves towards the pinion-gears 22 to engage their ratchet-teeth 38 with the teeth on the ends of the hubs 25 of the pinions while being yieldable to permit release of the teeth from engagement.

Referring to Figs. 3 and 5, a pair of cams 44 and mounted fast on the cam-shaft 25 are yprovided 'for oscillating the rockable member 'shape in side view with three lobes 48 of the same contour. The three lobes 48 of each cam are spaced equidistantly around the axis at 120 intervals, and each lobe has an arcuate working face 58 terminating in a straight edge from which a flat surface 5| recedes to join the inner end of the arcuate face 50 of the next succeeding lobe of the cam at a point near the periphery of the sleeve 46. The cams i4 and 45 may be constructed integral with their spacing hub or sleeve 46 and disposed in opposite relationship about their axis as indicated by the dotted lines shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings. The arcuate working faces 50 of the two cams 44 and 45 are arranged to engage alternately with rollers 54 and 53, respectively, that are journaled on the ends of a relatively at oscillatable member 55 constituted as a rocker for reciprocating the slidable cutterbar of the machine. The rollers 53 and 54 are mounted in slots 55 at the opposite ends of the rocker-element 55 and journaled on pins 51 seated in holes therein and held in place by cross-pins 58. The rollers 53 and 54 are formed with convex peripheries to adapt them to engage with the working faces 58 of the cams 45 and 45 in whatever position the rocker-element 55 may be rocked to during the engagement of the respective cams with the rollers, see Fig. 3.

The rocker-element 55 is pivoted on a vertical stud 68 held in the bearing block l, previously mentioned as forming a part of the crossbar 5. The stud 68 projects upwardly through a central hole in the block l and is formed with a rectangular flange-like plate or head 5I fastened to the under side of the block by bolts 62 and nuts 53, see Fig. 5. The rocker-element 55 is journaled on the stud 55 by means of ballbearings arranged as shown in Fig. 5, being supported by a thrust-bearing 64 constituted by races 65 and 65 held in a bore in the bearing block 1 with balls `5'! between the races, the rocker-element resting on the upper race 65 to take the downward thrust. Surrounding the stud 6G are twin ball-bearings 68 and 69 having their races set into recesses 69 at the top and bottom of the rocker-element 55. A washer 'I8 overlies the ends of the races of the upper bearing 88 and a second smaller washer 'H is held down thereagainst by a Cotter-pin 12 projecting through a hole in the end of the stud B0.

The rocker-element 55 is of generally triangular shape in plan view with a forked extension i3 projecting forwardly at the front. The forward extension T3 is provided with a slot 'i4 for receiving a-slclable block 'E5 and the slot is formed .with ledges 'i6 at the bottom on which the block rests. The slidable block 'I5 is bored to receive a stud or rod 'Il passing therethrough and through a rectangular plate 7B fastened to the sides of the fork '|'3 by bolts 'i3'. Overlying the upper face of the plate 'i8 is a washer 8l held in place by a Cotter-pin i9 projecting through a hole at the upper end of the rod il. The rod 1l is connected to the slidable cutter-blade 30 which rests on a stationary cutter-bar 8| supported by horizontal fingers or rests 82, see Figs. 3 and 6, carried by a pair of rods 83 depending from hubs or bosses 84. The bosses 84 are supported by their narrow necks 85 fastened to the inner faces of the side plates 2 of the main frame of the machine. The rods 83 are slidable in the bores of the hubs or bosses 84 to adapt the cutter-bars and 8l to be raised or lowered in relation to the ground to regulate the height of their cutting blades and thereby determine the length of the grass out. Setscrews 84 in the sides of the hubs 84, see Fig, 5, are employed for engaging the rods 33 to secure them in adjusted position. It will be observed by reference to Fig. 3 that both cutter-blades 88 and 8l have their rearward portions of a length adapted to nt within the confines of the side plates 2 with a clearance at their vends and their forward portions of greater length to provide extended cutting faces which are serrated to form the shearing knives orblades later described.

.the-continued forward movement of the mower the reciprocable blade 8o will be traversed in the opposite direction to shear the grass standing between the knife-blades. This last motion of the reciprocable cutter-bar 8B is caused by the turning of the cam 44 which causes its curved operating face 59 to act against the roller 54 to oscillate the rocker-element 55 in the opposite direction or clockwise about the axis of its pivotbearing. AIn this way the cams 44 and 45 rotated by the turning of the cam-shaft 25 set -up a substantially constant rocking motion of the rockerelement 55 to reciprocate the movable cutterbar 80 back and forth longitudinally of the fixed cutter-bar i3! It will be understood that the rod TI which is connected to the movable cutterbar 8i) will be oscillated'laterally back and forth in a substantially straight path with its mounting in the slide-block 15 accommodated during this motion by a slight sliding action of the block in the slot 'i4 of the fork 'i3 on the rocker-element It should be explained that the drive from the traction-wheels 4 and their ring-gears 2i] through the pinicns 22 to the cam-shaft 25 responds to any differential motion of the two traction-wheels 4 by means of the clutches 39 which connect the pinions to the cam-shaft. 'I'hat is, when one traction-wheel 4 rotates faster than the opposite wheel, due to a circular course of the mower along the ground, the wheel having the greater motion will have its pinion 22 engaged positively with its respective clutch-sleeve 39 whereas, the opposite pinion may lag behind in its rotation due to the ratchet connection between its hub and the sleeve 30. Thus, the mower may be turned in circular courses or swung around sharply at the end' of cutting a swath with the clutches for the gears providing for the differential motion between the traction-wheels; for example, one wheel 4 may be turning forwardly while the opposite one rotates in the reverse direction. Likewise, when the mower is drawn rearwardly along the ground with the traction-wheels 4 turning in clockwise direction and the pinions 22 driven in the same direction the ratchet connection between the hubs of the pinions 22 and the clutchsleeves 30 will permit rotation of the gears without rotating the cam-shaft 25 so that the rockerelement 55 will remain at rest without reciprocating the movable cutter-bar 38.,

It will be observed from the foregoing description that the present invention provides a relatively simple and compact mechanism for the operation of lawn-mowers either manually propelled or driven by power and with an improved construction which aiords important advantages hereinbefore set forth and noted as follows: First, the operating parts of the mechanism are provided with friction-,reducing bearings such as the needleand ball-bearings specified to insure easy operation of the mower in propelling it along the ground; and secondly, these friction-reducing bearings also provide for long wear of the operating parts to avoid their deterioration and require replacement.

As a further important improvement, the shape and arrangement of the blades of the cutterbars assures maximum eiiciency of cutting action, the lower fixed knife-blades being projected forwardly beyond the points of the oscillating knifeblades operate to gather leaning or inclined grassspears to properly present them to the cutting edges of the knives in erect position, thereby insuring an evenly cut lawn. Another advantage fifi secured by the novel construction ofthe knifeblades is due to the manner of their operation with the inclined cutting edges of the blades 0n the reciprocable bar cooperating with straight cutting edges of the fixed blades in such manner as to practically eliminate anyrshearing action tending to force some of the fine grass spears out of position between the knives. In other words, the groups of grass spears are held located in proper position between the straight sides of the fixed knife-blades with the inclined edges of the tapered knives causing the shearing action without any tendency to force the grass away from the knives.

While the invention is herein shown as embodied in a preferred form of construction, it is to be understood that various modications may be made in the shape and arrangement of the parts of the mower without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as expressed in the following claims. Therefore, without limiting ourselves in this respect, we claim:

1. In a mowing machine comprising a frame supported by traction-wheels journaled thereon and embodying relatively-reciprocable cutterbars mounted on said frame and provided with Vcooperating sharpened teeth, the combination of a rocker-element pivotally mounted on said frame for relatively reciprocating said bars, bearings on said frame, a cam-shaft journaled in said bearings on the frame, oppositely-arranged cams fast on said shaft for oscillating the rocker-element in a horizontal plane, gears rotatable on the camshaft and connectedto be driven from the traction-wheels, and clutches on the cam-shaft for connecting the gears t0 rotate the cam-shaft in one direction only while permitting lost motion between the gears and cam-shaft to provide for differential motion of the traction-wheels.

2. In a mowing machine comprising a frame supported by traction-wheels journaled thereon and cutter-bars mounted on the frame and having cooperating sharpened teeth, the combination of a rocker-element pivotally mounted on the frame for relatively reciprocating said cutterbars, bearings on the frame, a cam-shaft journaled in said bearings on the frame, oppositely arranged cams fast on said cam-shaft for oscillating said rocker-element in a horizontal plane, pinion-gears rotatable on the cam-shaft and connected to be driven from said tractionwheels, one-way clutches on the cam-shaft connecting said pinion-gears to rotate the cam-shaft, and springs for normally maintaining said clutches in connection with the pinion-gears while permitting lost motion between the gears and camshaft to adapt the traction-wheels to turn with differential motion.

3. In a mowing machine comprising a frame, a pair of cutter-bars mounted on said frame and having cooperating sharpened teeth, the combination of a rocker-element pivotally mounted on said frame and connected to one of the cutterbars to impart relative reciprocation between said cutter-bars, rollers journaled in spaced-apart relationship on the rocker-element, bearings on the frame, a cam-shaft journaled in said bearings, a pair of cams on the cam-shaft engaging the rollers on the rocker-element for rocking said rocker-element in a horizontal plane, gears rotatable on the cam-shaft and driven from the traction-wheels, clutches slidable on the camshaft and forced with ratchet-teeth engageable with correspondingly-formed ratchet-teeth on the gears to connect the latter for driving the cam-shaft, and resilient means for normally maintaining said clutches with their teeth in engagement with the teeth on the gears while being disengageable therefrom to provide for differential motion between the traction-wheels.

4. In a mowing machine comprising a frame with traction-Wheels journaled thereon for supporting said frame, relatively reciprocable cutterbars mounted on the frame and having cooperaton the rocker-element to oscillate said element in a horizontal plane, and differential gearingconnections between the traction-wheels and cam-shaft for rotating the cams in one direction while permitting reverse rotation ofthe gears to adapt the traction-wheels to turn independently of each other. Y

5. In a mowing machine comprising a frame' supported by traction-Wheels journaled thereon, the combination of a mounting supported by said frame and formed with a pivot bearing at the center thereof, a rocker-element journaled on said pivot bearing to oscillate in a horizontal plane, a pair of rests supported for vertical adjustment on the frame, a stationary cutter-bar fastened to said rests on the frame, a movable vcutter-bar mounted on the stationary bar to slide longitudinally thereof, means pivotally connecting the rocker-element to reciprocate the movable cutter-bar while permitting vertical adjustment of the cutter-'bars without disturbing said pivotal connecting means, a pair of cams rotatably mounted on said frame for oscillating the rocker-element, and means operated by the traction-wheels for rotating said cams during the travel of the machine along the ground.

6. In a mowing machine comprising a frame supported by traction-wheels journaled thereon, and having side plates with cross-members connecting said side plates, the combination of a bearing on one of said cross-members, a rockerelement journaled on said vbearing to adapt it to oscillate in a horizontal plane, said rocker-element formed with a fork, a cutter-bar xedly mounted on said frame, a movable cutter-bar mounted adjacent said fixed bar to reciprocate with respect to the xed bar, means for supporting said .cutter-bars to adapt them to be ad- 7. In a mowing machine comprising a frame supported rby traction-wheels journaled thereon and having side plates with a crossbar extending therebetween. the combination of a pivot bearing onsaid crossbar, a rocker-element pivoted on the bearing on the crossbar to adapt it to oscillate in a horizontal plane, said rockerelement formed with a fork, a stationary cutterbar fixedly mounted on the frame, a movable cutter-bar overlying the stationary cutter-bar and :adapted for reciprocation relatively thereto, rests on the frame for supporting said cutterbars, vertical rods slidable on the frame for supjusted vertically at varying heights above the f ground, a vertical stud connected to the movable cutter-bar and engaging. through the forkv on the rocker-element to adapt the latter toy e the machine on the around.

porting the rests to adapt the cutter-bars to be adjusted 'to vary their height above the ground,

means for securing said rods. to hold the cutterbars in adjusted position above the ground, means on the frame operative during the travel of the machine on the ground to oscillate the rocker-element, and means connected to the movable cutter-bar and slidably engaging the fork of the rocker-element to cause the latter to reciprocate the movable cutter-bar.

8. In a mowing machine comprising a frame supported by traction-wheels journaled at the sides of the frame and a pair of cutter-bars mounted on the front of the frame to adapt them for relative reciprocation, the combination of a rocker-element pivotally mounted at the center of the frame, a vertically-projecting stud on one of the cutter-bars engageable through a slidable bearing on the rocker-element to pivotally connect it thereto to reciprocate said cutter-.bar relative lto the other bar, rollers journaled in spaced-apart relationship on the rockerelement, a cam-shaft journaled on said frame, a pair lof triangularly-shaped cams on said camshaft having spaced radial lobes arranged in opposite relationship to adapt said lobes to intermittently engage the rollers on the rocker-element to oscillate the latter, and means operated by the traction-Wheels 'for rotating said cams during the travel of the machine along the ground.

f JOHN F. MCSHANE.

WALTER LOGAN.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 283,425 Scofield Aug. 21, 1883 284,435 Keeler Sept. 4, 1883 632,173 Cameron Aug. 29, 1899 673,016 rCoilinberry Apr. 30, 1901 760,695 Leavitt May 24, 1904 925,352 Kryger June 15, 1909 956,385 Lovett Apr. 26, 1910 961,485 Dale et al June 14', 1910 2,011,822 Munschauer Aug. 20, 1935 2,288,498 Underwood June 30, 1942 

